Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

Certification Overview
The National Instruments LabVIEW Certification Program consists of the following three
certification levels:
- Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)
- Certified LabVIEW Developer (CLD)
- Certified LabVIEW Architect (CLA)
Each level is a prerequisite for the next level of certification.
A CLAD demonstrates a broad and complete understanding of the core features and
functionality available in the LabVIEW Full Development System and possesses the
ability to apply that knowledge to develop, debug, and maintain small LabVIEW
modules. The typical experience level of a CLAD is approximately 6 to 9 months in the
use of the LabVIEW Full Development System.
A CLD demonstrates experience in developing, debugging, and deploying and
maintaining medium to large scale LabVIEW applications. A CLD is a professional with an
approximate cumulative experience of 12 to 18 months developing medium to large
applications in LabVIEW.
A CLA demonstrates mastery in architecting LabVIEW applications for a multi-developer
environment. A CLA not only possesses the technical expertise and software
development experience to break a project specification into manageable LabVIEW
components but has the experience to see the project through by effectively utilizing
project and configuration management tools. A CLA is a professional with an
approximate cumulative experience of 24 months in developing medium to large
applications in LabVIEW.
Note The CLAD certification is a prerequisite to taking the CLD exam.
The CLD certification is a prerequisite to taking the CLA exam.
There are no exceptions to this requirement for each exam.

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

Exam Overview
Product: LabVIEW Full Development System version 2010 for Windows. Refer to
LabVIEW Development Systems comparison for details on the features available in the
LabVIEW Full Development System.
Exam Duration: 1 hour
Number of Questions: 40
Style of Questions: Multiple-choice
Passing grade: 70%
The exam validates application knowledge and not the ability to recall menu steps or
names of VIs and components.
The use of LabVIEW or any other external resources is prohibited during the exam. For
assistance and wherever appropriate, screenshots from the LabVIEW Help are provided
in the exam.
To maintain the integrity of the exam, you may not copy or reproduce any section of the
exam. Failure to comply will result in failure. In areas where the exam is deployed as a
paper based exam, detaching the binding staple will result in failure without evaluation.

Exam Logistics
United States and Europe: The CLAD exam can be taken at Pearson Vue test centers.
The exam is computer-based and results are available immediately upon completion of
the exam. Refer to www.pearsonvue.com/ni for more details and scheduling.
Asia: The exam is paper-based, for which the evaluations and results take about 4
weeks. Please contact your National Instruments local office for details and scheduling.
For general questions or comments, email: certification@ni.com.

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

Exam Topics

Variables

Front
Panel

Programming
Tasks

Structures

General

The CLAD consists of 40 questions. Each exam consists of a specific number of questions
from each category listed in the table below.
Exam Topics
LabVIEW Programming Principles
LabVIEW Environment
Data Types
Arrays and Clusters
Error Handling

Number of Questions
3
2
2
4
2

Documentation
Debugging
Loops
Case Structures
Sequence Structures
Event Structures
File I/O
Timing
VI Server
Synchronization and Communication

1
2
4
1
1
2
1
2
2
2

Design Patterns
Charts and Graphs
Mechanical Actions of Booleans
Property Nodes
Local Variables

2
2
1
2
1

Functional Global Variables

Total

40

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

Exam Topics (Overview):

Topic

Subtopic

1. LabVIEW Programming Principles

2. LabVIEW Environment

3. Data Types

4. Arrays and Clusters

5. Error Handling

6. Documentation
7. Debugging
8. Loops

9. Case Structures

10. Sequence Structures

11. Event Structures

a.
b.
a.
b.
c.
d.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
a.
b.
c.
a.
b.
c.
d.
a.
b.
a.
b.
a.
b.
c.
d.
a.
b.
c.
a.
b.
c.
a.
b.

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Data Flow
Parallelism
Virtual Instruments (VIs)
Front Panel and Block Diagram
Icon and Connector Pane
Context Help Window
Numeric, String, Boolean, Path,
Enum
Clusters
Arrays
Type Definitions
Waveforms
Timestamps
Dynamic Data Type
Data Representation
Coercion
Data Conversion and Manipulation
Array Functions
Cluster Functions
Function Polymorphism
Error Clusters
Error Handling VIs and Functions
Custom Error Codes
Automatic/Manual Error Handling
Importance
Context Help
Tools
Techniques
Loop Components
Auto-indexing
Shift Registers
Loop Behavior
Case Selector
Tunnels
Applications
Types
Behavior
Applications
Notify and Filter Events
Applications

Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
12. File I/O

a.
b.
a.
b.
a.
b.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
a.
b.
c.

13. Timing
14. VI Server
15. Data Synchronization and
Communication

16. Design Patterns

17. Charts and Graphs

18. Mechanical Action of Booleans
19. Property Nodes
20. Local Variables
21. Functional Global Variables

Functions and VIs

Applications
Timing Functions
Applications
Class Hierarchy
Applications
Notifiers
Queues
Semaphores
Global Variables
Applications
State Machine
Master/Slave
Producer/Consumer (Data and
Events)
d. Applications
a. Types
b. Plotting Data
See CLAD Topic Details
See CLAD Topic Details
a. Behavior
b. Applications
a. Behavior
b. Applications

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

CLAD Topics Details

1. LabVIEW Programming Principles
a. Data Flow
i. Define data flow
ii. Identify the importance of data flow in LabVIEW
iii. Identify programming practices that enforce data flow in the block
diagram, VIs, and subVIs
iv. Identify programming practices that break data flow
v. Trace execution of code through a VI
b. Parallelism
i. Define parallel execution
ii. Identify parallel code structure
iii. Identify programming caveats of parallelism
iv. Define race conditions
v. Identify race conditions in code
vi. Identify indeterminate execution
2. LabVIEW Environment
a. Virtual Instruments (VIs)
i. Front Panel and Block Diagram
1. Identify the relationship between front panel objects and
block diagram objects
2. Visually inspect and analyze front panels and block
diagrams to describe functionality
3. Determine front panel results based on given block
diagrams
4. Identify VI types that do not have block diagrams
5. Utilize front panel object properties and options for given
applications
ii. Icon and Connector Pane
1. Identify the purpose of the icon and connector pane
2. Identify and distinguish between different connection
types
b. Context Help Window
i. Identify and define the three connector pane terminal types
Required, Recommended, and Optional
ii. Determine the functionality of a VI or function, given its Context
Help window

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
3. Data Types and Data Structures
a. Numeric, String, Boolean, Path, Enum
i. Identify the most appropriate data type for front panel and block
diagram objects
ii. Identify and describe functions associated with the following data
types
1. NumericNumeric, Conversion, Data Manipulation, and
Comparison palettes
2. StringString, String/Number Conversion, and
String/Array/Path Conversion palettes
3. BooleanBoolean palette
4. PathPath functions on File I/O palette
b. Clusters
i. Identify applications that would benefit from data grouping using
clusters
ii. Select and apply the Bundle, Unbundle, Bundle by Name, and
Unbundle by Name functions
iii. Determine the impact of reordering controls or indicators in a
cluster
c. Arrays
i. Select and apply functions on the Array palette
ii. Identify techniques that cause memory usage issues
iii. Identify techniques that minimize memory usage
iv. Identify and describe applications that would benefit from proper
array usage
d. Type Definitions
i. Identify and describe the applications which would benefit from
the use of a type definition or a strict type definition
ii. Determine if a type definition or a strict type definition is needed
to represent a data item
e. Waveforms
i. Select and apply waveform data type to display data on graphs
and charts
ii. Select and apply the Build Waveform and Get Waveform
Components functions for given applications

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
f. Timestamps
i. Describe the timestamp data type and how it applies to
measurement data
ii. Select and apply timestamp functions located on the Timing
palette for given applications
g. Dynamic Data Type
i. Identify use cases for dynamic data
ii. Describe the functionality of the Convert from Dynamic Data
Express VI
iii. Identify which types of controls/indicators and inputs/outputs can
use dynamic data
h. Data Representation
i. Describe bit usage for different data representations
ii. Change numeric representation of controls, indicators, and
constants
iii. Identify data representation range limitations and wrap-around
with different types of integers
iv. Identify native LabVIEW big-endianness
i. Coercion
i. Select the most appropriate data type to limit coercion
ii. Identify resulting data type and memory usage in heterogeneous
numeric operations
iii. Correctly select and apply functions from the Conversion palette
j. Data Conversion and Manipulation
i. Define and apply principles of data conversion, manipulation, and
typecasting
ii. Identify and select functions used for converting between data
types and numeric representations
4. Arrays and Clusters
a. Array Functions
i. Identify functions from the Array palette
ii. Determine outcome of given block diagrams using array functions
iii. Select and apply functions to give desired execution behavior
iv. Compare and select equivalent design alternatives

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
b. Cluster Functions
i. Identify functions from the Cluster, Class, & Variant palette
pertaining to clusters
ii. Determine outcome of given block diagrams using cluster
functions
iii. Select and apply cluster functions to give desired execution
behavior
c. Function Polymorphism
i. Define polymorphism
ii. Identify benefits of polymorphism
iii. Determine the output of data elements in VIs using polymorphic
inputs
5. Error Handling
a. Error Clusters
i. Define and identify the function of the components of the error
cluster
ii. Identify terminals that accept error clusters as inputs
iii. Differentiate between errors and warnings
b. Error Handling VIs and Functions
i. Identify VIs from the Dialog & User Interface palette that pertain
to error handling
ii. Identify the most appropriate locations to handle and report
errors
iii. Select a VI or function to complete specified error handling and
reporting functionality
c. Custom Error Codes
i. Identify the reserved range for custom error codes
ii. Generate custom errors from VIs by manipulating error clusters
d. Automatic/Manual Error Handling
i. Describe the effects automatic error handling
ii. Design VIs that manage errors thoroughly and effectively
iii. Given a block diagram, describe the execution behavior when
errors occur

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
6. Documentation
a. Importance
i. Identify the importance of adding a description to VI Properties
ii. Identify the importance of adding a tip strip
b. Context Help
i. Determine which inputs are required for executing a VI
ii. Describe how to document inputs and outputs of a VI in Context
Help
7. Debugging
a. Tools
i. Identify debugging toolsHighlight Execution, Breakpoints and
Single-Stepping, Probes
ii. Explain the function and proper use case for specific debugging
tools
b. Techniques
i. Given a situation, select the most appropriate debugging tool or
strategy
ii. Determine if an error occurs given a specific block diagram
8. While Loops and For Loops
a. Loop Components
i. Identify loop components and describe their functionsTunnels,
Count Terminal, Conditional Terminal, Iteration Terminal, Shift
Registers
ii. Describe the behavior of loop components
b. Auto-Indexing
i. Identify auto-indexing tunnels
ii. Identify default indexing settings when creating new tunnels
iii. Describe auto-indexing tunnels and determine the effects of using
or not using auto-indexing tunnels

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
c. Shift Registers
i. Describe the appropriate use and initialization of shift registers as
data storage elements
ii. Determine the data values in shift registers after a set number of
iteration or upon loop termination
iii. Identify the behavior of initialize and uninitialized stacked shift
registers
iv. Identify Feedback Nodes and their use in loops
d. Loop Behavior
i. Identify specific behavior of For Loops and While Loops
ii. Select and apply the most suitable looping structure
iii. Given a block diagram, determine the number of iterations a loop
iterates
iv. Identify use cases for the conditional terminal in For Loops
v. Determine which loop terminals are required for code execution
in various situations
9. Case Structures
a. Case selector
i. Identify data types that are acceptable as inputs
ii. Identify different case options for ranges of numeric values
iii. Given a block diagram, determine which case executes
b. Tunnels
i. Identify the different options for output tunnels
ii. Identify pros and cons of each tunnel type
c. Applications
i. Determine when a case structure should be used instead of other
structures
ii. Identify proper placement of controls and indicators with respect
to case structures

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
10. Sequence Structures
a. Types
i. Flat sequence structures
ii. Stacked sequence structures
b. Behavior
i. Identify basic functionality of sequence structures
ii. Determine results of a given block diagram containing sequence
structures
iii. Describe sequence structure behavior when errors occur
iv. Describe the behavior of sequence locals in stacked sequence
structures
c. Applications
i. Identify pros and cons of stacked and flat sequence structures
ii. Determine when a sequence structure is more appropriate than
other structures
11. Event Structures
a. Notify and Filter Events
i. Define filter events and notify events
ii. Describe the differing behavior of filter and notify events
iii. Identify filter and notify events on a block diagram
iv. Apply Value (signaling) property nodes with event structures
b. Applications
i. Identify the advantages of event-driven programming
ii. Identify different ways an event may be generated
iii. Given a block diagram, determine the execution results
12. File I/O
a. Functions and VIs
i. Identify VIs and functions from the File I/O palette
ii. Determine the outcome of given block diagrams using these
functions
iii. Identify pros and cons of high-level and low-level File I/O VIs
b. Applications
i. Predict if an error occurs in a block diagram
ii. Determine the number of bytes written by certain functions given
a block diagram
iii. Determine the most and least efficient methods for writing data
to a file

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
13. Timing
a. Timing Functions
i. Identify and describe functions on the Timing palette
ii. Describe the effect of rollover with the Tick Count function
b. Applications
i. Given a scenario, select the most appropriate function
ii. Select appropriate functions for decreasing CPU usage in a loop
iii. Select appropriate functions for timing applications over long
periods
14. VI Server
a. Class Hierarchy
i. Describe method and property inheritance
ii. Select appropriate references for interacting with controls and
subVIs
b. Applications
i. Identify appropriate use cases for property nodes and invoke
nodes
ii. Select appropriate property nodes and invoke nodes to call
properties and methods
iii. Differentiate between strictly and weakly typed control
references
iv. Describe interaction between calling VIs and subVIs using VI
Server
15. Data Synchronization and Communication
a. Notifiers
i. Identify and describe functions on the Notifier palette
ii. Given a block diagram using notifiers, determine execution
outcome
b. Queues
i. Identify and describe functions on the Queue palette
ii. Given a block diagram using queues, determine the execution
outcome
c. Semaphores
i. Describe the functionality of semaphores
ii. Identify appropriate use cases for semaphores

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
d. Global Variables
i. Describe the behavior of global variables
ii. Identify appropriate use cases for global variables
e. Applications
i. Given design scenarios, select the best data synchronization
mechanism
ii. Describe the differing functionality between notifiers and queues
16. Design Patterns
a. State Machine
i. Identify principal components of the state machine architecture
ii. Identify mechanisms used for maintaining state information
b. Master/Slave
i. Identify principal components of the master/slave architecture
ii. Identify pros and cons of the master/slave design pattern
iii. Describe inherent loop timing provided by notifiers
c. Producer/Consumer (Data and Events)
i. Identify principal components of the producer/consumer design
pattern
ii. Identify pros and cons of the producer/consumer design pattern
iii. Describe inherent loop timing provided by queues
d. Applications
i. Given a programming task, select the best design pattern
ii. Compare design patterns and identify pros and cons of each
17. Charts and Graphs
a. Types
i. Distinguish between the different types of charts and graphs
ii. Describe the buffering functionality of waveform charts
iii. Identify which graphs support uneven X axis scales
iv. Identify which types of charts and graphs support multiple axes
b. Plotting Data
i. Identify the data types accepted by charts and graphs
ii. Given a scenario, select the most appropriate chart or graph type
18. Mechanical Action of Booleans
a. Describe the six different mechanical actions
b. Identify appropriate use cases for each action
c. Given a scenario and a block diagram, determine the execution outcome

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview
19. Property Nodes
a. Define the execution order of Property Nodes
b. Identify ideal use cases for Property Nodes
c. Determine what happens if an error occurs during execution of a
Property Node
20. Local Variables
a. Behavior
i. Describe the behavior or local variables
ii. Given a block diagram using local variables, determine the result
iii. Identify possible race conditions
b. Applications
i. Determine when it is appropriate to use local variables for
communication
ii. Debug block diagrams that use local variables inappropriately
21. Functional Global Variables
a. Behavior
i. Describe the behavior of functional global variables
ii. Identify the components and the data storage mechanism
iii. Identify the need for non-reentrancy
b. Applications
i. Describe the synchronization capability of functional global
variables
ii. Describe information hiding
iii. Given a scenario, determine if a functional global variable is
appropriate

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Certified LabVIEW Associate Developer (CLAD)

Certification and Exam Overview

CLAD Exam Preparation Resources

Use the following resources for exam preparation:
CLAD Preparation:
CLAD Preparation E-Kit (includes preparation guides and sample exams)
CLAD Preparation Webcasts:
National Instruments CLAD Preparation Course (Online) webcast
Most missed concepts on the CLAD exam
Free Online LabVIEW Training & Tutorials
Online LabVIEW Graphical Programming Course (hosted by Connexions)
LabVIEW Introduction Course Three Hours
LabVIEW Introduction Course Six Hours
National Instruments Instructor-led or Self-paced training courses:
LabVIEW Core 1
LabVIEW Core 2
LabVIEW Core 3
LabVIEW Performance
Other National Instruments Resources:
National Instruments Academic Web
National Instruments Developer Zone
National Instruments LabVIEW Zone
National Instruments LabVIEW Support

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